=How North2North Turned a Music Competition into a Canadian/Swedish Family at Lilla By Festivalen 2026

Long before the first note rang out across the fields of Rinkaby, Sweden something remarkable was already taking shape.

Artists from across Canada arrived on different flights, converging by train in Kristianstad before being warmly welcomed by Lilla By Festivalen co-founder Jonas Tancred. From there, they travelled together to the picturesque Baltic Sea cabins in Åhus, where the Canadian delegation would make its home for the next four unforgettable days.

For many, it was their first visit to Sweden, some even Europe. For others, it was a welcome return. Yet within hours, any sense of being strangers had quietly disappeared.

One of the week's most memorable evenings took place before the festival had officially begun, when Jonas Tancred and Malin Östh welcomed the Canadian delegation to a traditional Swedish Midsummer celebration in the common room of the Åhus cabins. Joined by North2North Executive Producer Sandy Graham, they greeted every artist not as visitors, but as honoured guests.

The room quickly filled with music as guitars and fiddles were passed from one musician to another. Songs flowed effortlessly between English and Swedish, and before long everyone was singing together as though they had known one another for years.

Adding to the magic of the evening were the festival's beloved emcees, Allgott & Villgott, whose humour and infectious energy have delighted Swedish audiences for more than four decades. With broad smiles and playful encouragement, they introduced the Canadians to the traditional Midsummer favourite Små grodorna ("The Little Frogs"), inviting everyone to dance around an imaginary maypole. (we used a banquet table for the switch out)

It was impossible not to laugh.